THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
Ranchi, Dec 11: Revenue from minor minerals in Jharkhand saw a steep fall over a five-year period, with the latest Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report—tabled by Jharkhand Finance Minister Radhakrishna Kishore in the state assembly on Thursday—highlighting widespread irregularities in the management of mining leases.
The audit found that receipts from minor minerals, which once contributed 5.36 per cent to the state’s total revenue, dropped to just 2.23 per cent between 2017-18 and 2021-22.
According to the report, the state earned ₹1,082.44 crore from minor minerals in 2017-18, but this declined sharply to ₹697.73 crore by 2021-22. While the mining department did not offer reasons for the drop, auditors detected several lapses that led to substantial revenue loss—such as short or non-levy of royalty, dead rent, and penalties.
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Audit Highlights Irregular Leases and Oversight
The performance audit, conducted from November 2022 to October 2023, covered Jharkhand State Mineral Development Corporation Limited and six district mining offices. It flagged irregular lease approvals, delays in auctions, and unauthorized extraction across multiple districts.
In Sahibganj, the deputy commissioner issued a mining lease for 4.74 hectares outside his jurisdiction. The same district mining office also processed another lease application for 3.136 hectares but issued the Letter of Intent for a reduced area of 2.833 hectares without any request from the applicant.
In Chatra and Palamu, eight stone mining leases were approved on land classified as ‘Jungle Jhar’, which falls under forest land.
The audit also pointed to extremely slow progress in auctioning mineral blocks—only 3.77 per cent of auctions were completed between 2018 and 2023.
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Large-Scale Revenue Losses Detected
Revenue leakages persisted throughout the period, including short levy of royalty worth ₹7.53 crore in 30 cases between October 2019 and January 2022, and non-realisation of ₹2.33 crore in dead rent across 15 cases between 2016 and 2022.
Unauthorized extraction was another major concern. 26 leases across four districts mined 33.21 lakh cubic metres of minor minerals beyond permissible limits between April 2014 and July 2023, incurring penalties worth ₹205.21 crore—none of which were imposed or recovered by district mining offices.
The report further recorded a potential revenue loss of ₹70.92 crore due to 368 non-operational sand ghats spread over 9,782.55 acres during the audit period.
To improve oversight, the CAG recommended instituting an online mining lease application system and creating a centralized mechanism for issuing royalty clearance certificates through the Jharkhand Integrated Mines and Minerals Management System.
